Comcast adds to smart home offerings with Icontrol

Comcast and Alarm.com have announced an agreement to acquire portions of Icontrol Networks, an 11-year old home security company.

The multi-deal involves Comcast purchasing the Icontrol Coverage platform, which already powers the Xfinity Home Screen and back-end servers used to control smart home devices. Comcast will also take control of the wholesale business.

Comcast did not disclose how much it paid for the business, though it has been involved in two funding rounds prior to the acquisition, where Icontrol raised $23 and $50 million.

In an effort to not seem predatory, Comcast said the Coverage platform will remain available for other companies. It also plans to keep the Icontrol team in Austin, merging them into a new engineering team.

“As this business becomes part of Comcast, we will strategically invest in its technology and technologists, so that we can deliver new features, products and services to both individual Xfinity Home customers and enterprise-level Converge customers, faster than ever before,” said Daniel Herscovici, the senior vice president and general manager of Xfinity Home.

Icontrol a pioneer in the connected home

Alarm.com will purchase Connect, the enterprise home security business, and Piper, the camera and security system. It did not say whether it intends to keep the two teams independent—which are currently based in Redwood City, California, and Ottawa, Canada—only saying that Connect and Piper will “compliment” the Alarm.com platform.

The press release did mention that Alarm.com paid approximately $140 million for the two businesses and expects the deal to complete by the end of 2016, barring any regulation difficulties.

“This acquisition will enhance our research and development scale so that we can continue to deliver long-term value to our partners through innovative technology,” said Steve Trundle, President and CEO of Alarm.com. “We look forward to welcoming the Icontrol team and to building upon the solid relationships within their customer base.”

“As one of the pioneers of connected home platforms, this is an exciting time for Icontrol,” said the company in a press release. “We are proud of the accomplishments and market leadership that our hard work has afforded. We look forward to watching the smart home market continue to grow.”